• MindWave Innovations is developing institutional-grade digital asset infrastructure designed to help corporations and institutions hold, manage and generate yield from Bitcoin reserves while combining traditional financial controls with blockchain efficiency.
• The company is expanding access to its ecosystem, with its native $NILA token now available to eligible U.S. users through Webot, providing a regulated pathway into the broader MindWaveDAO ecosystem.
• The expansion is expected to continue with the October 2026 launch of MindChain, an independent Layer 2 blockchain that MindWave describes as the world’s first fully insured blockchain and a foundation for broader ecosystem development and real-world asset tokenization.

As digital assets mature, the opportunity is increasingly extending beyond simply owning cryptocurrency. For corporations and institutional investors, the next challenge is building infrastructure that can help manage digital assets, generate potential returns and maintain appropriate financial controls.

MindWave Innovations (NYSE American: APUS) is positioning itself around that transition. The digital asset and technology company offers institutional-grade treasury infrastructure designed to help corporations and institutional investors hold, manage and generate yield from Bitcoin reserves. Its approach combines elements of traditional financial infrastructure, including custody and reporting, with blockchain-based transparency and efficiency.

The company’s strategy extends beyond Bitcoin treasury management. Through MindWaveDAO, the company is developing an interconnected ecosystem that brings together treasury infrastructure, AI-enabled yield capabilities, blockchain technology, tokenization, staking and governance.

From Bitcoin Treasury to Broader Digital Infrastructure

MindWave’s August 2026 Ecosystem Journal positions treasury management as a foundation for broader ecosystem development, with the company emphasizing areas including infrastructure, interoperability, real-world asset tokenization, governance and $NILA utility.

Rather than treating these capabilities as standalone products, MindWave is positioning them as complementary components of a broader digital financial system. Bitcoin treasury infrastructure provides the financial foundation, while blockchain infrastructure and tokenization are intended to create additional opportunities for participation and application development.

At the center of that model is $NILA, the ecosystem’s native token. The token is designed to support activities including staking, governance and access to ecosystem services, giving it a role beyond simply functioning as a digital asset.

That strategy is beginning to translate into tangible expansion. As of August 3, 2026, $NILA became available to eligible U.S. users through Webot, giving participants a regulated pathway to access the token and the broader ecosystem.

The move represents more than another trading venue. It expands MindWave’s reach into a strategically important market while reinforcing the company’s emphasis on regulated access and responsible ecosystem development.

MindChain Creates the Next Layer

The next major milestone is the anticipated October 2026 launch of MindChain.

MindWave describes MindChain as the world’s first fully insured blockchain. The network is being developed as an independent Layer 2 built on a Nitro-compatible execution stack and compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (“EVM”). The company says the network will use Ethereum for settlement and data availability while providing faster transaction execution.

The network is also designed to support application-specific subnets, EVM-compatible development tools and cross-chain interoperability. These capabilities are intended to give developers and institutions a flexible infrastructure for building applications while maintaining connections with the broader blockchain ecosystem.

Real-world asset tokenization is an important part of that opportunity. As financial institutions increasingly explore bringing assets such as funds, securities, commodities and other real-world value onto blockchain networks, the need for infrastructure capable of supporting those applications is growing.

MindChain is being positioned to provide that infrastructure within the MindWave ecosystem.

The Transition to MindChain

MindChain will also change the role of $NILA. Currently deployed on BNB Chain, the token is expected to become the native asset of MindChain following the network’s launch, supporting transaction fees, staking and validator participation.

Existing holders are expected to have access to a dedicated Migration Portal to transition from the current BNB Chain token to native $NILA. 

The transition would give $NILA a more direct relationship with the infrastructure supporting the broader ecosystem. Rather than functioning solely as a token within an existing network, it is designed to become part of the operating layer of MindChain itself.

This makes the timing of the Webot expansion particularly relevant. The August milestone broadens access to $NILA ahead of the planned October launch, while MindChain is intended to provide the infrastructure for its next phase of utility.

Building an Institutional Digital Economy

The broader opportunity for MindWave is the convergence of digital assets, institutional finance and blockchain infrastructure.

As companies become more comfortable holding Bitcoin and other digital assets, demand may increasingly shift toward the systems that help institutions manage those assets, generate potential returns and connect them with additional financial applications.

MindWave is attempting to address that opportunity through an ecosystem that connects Bitcoin treasury management with yield generation, governance, staking, tokenization and dedicated blockchain infrastructure.

The availability of $NILA to eligible U.S. users through Webot and the anticipated October 2026 launch of MindChain represent two important milestones in that strategy. The first expands access to the ecosystem, while the second is intended to provide the underlying infrastructure for its next phase of development.

If MindWave executes on its roadmap, the next stage will be less about establishing individual components and more about demonstrating how those components can work together to support institutions, developers and participants across a growing digital financial economy.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.MindWaveDAO.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to APUS are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/APUS

• The challenge for steel and other heavy industries is not finding carbon; it is finding carbon that performs reliably without introducing sulfur into the process.
• FASCarbon(TM) is the solid carbon output of Frontieras’s FASForm(TM) process, a continuous solid carbon fractionation system that thermally cracks coal without combustion.
• FASCarbon’s low sulfur content makes it a direct substitute for higher-grade, more expensive carbon inputs in steelmaking and industrial heating applications.

Coal has always been valued for what it produces when burned. Frontieras North America has built a business around what it produces when it isn’t burned. The company’s FASForm(TM) process fractionates coal into its molecular components without combustion, generating diesel, naphtha, jet fuel, ammonium sulfate fertilizer, sulfuric acid, and FASCarbon(TM), a solid carbon product with sulfur content below 1%. That specification puts Frontieras directly inside the industrial carbon market that steel manufacturers, cement producers and heavy industrial operators depend on, and that consistently rewards suppliers who can deliver cleaner, more consistent carbon inputs.

The industrial carbon market is already large and growing fast. The global petroleum coke market, the primary reference point for industrial carbon products, was valued at approximately $35.5 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $68.82 billion by 2030. Steel production is one of the primary drivers. Global crude steel output reached approximately 1.92 billion metric tons in 2023, and the carbon inputs required to produce it represent a persistent, infrastructure-driven demand.

The challenge for steel and other heavy industries is not finding carbon; it is finding carbon that performs reliably without introducing sulfur into the process. Sulfur content in petroleum coke ranges from roughly 0.5% to 6%, depending on the feedstock and refining process. High sulfur levels restrict how petcoke can be used. In steel manufacturing, sulfur contaminates the melt and degrades the quality of finished metal. In some instances, such as electrode production for electric arc furnaces, low sulfur content is a hard requirement. Fuel-grade petcoke with elevated sulfur faces increasing regulatory scrutiny in combustion applications. The market consistently assigns a premium to lower-sulfur carbon products because they are more useful across more applications.

This is the market position that FASCarbon occupies. FASCarbon is the solid carbon output of Frontieras’s FASForm process, a continuous solid carbon fractionation system that thermally cracks coal without combustion. The process separates coal into its constituent components, including diesel, naphtha, hydrogen, fertilizer, sulfuric acid and solid carbon, and captures sulfur compounds before they reach the final carbon product. The process removes more than 90% of sulfur from the coal, and the result is a carbon material with sulfur content below 1%.

That specification matters in practical terms. Steel manufacturers using carbon as a recarburizing agent, or adding carbon back into molten metal to hit precise carbon content targets, need a consistent, low-contamination product. High sulfur in the carbon means high sulfur in the steel, which weakens the material and can require additional processing to correct. FASCarbon’s low sulfur content makes it a direct substitute for higher-grade, more expensive carbon inputs in steelmaking and industrial heating applications.

FASCarbon is not a product Frontieras developed alongside its fuel and chemical outputs as an afterthought. The proprietary platform carries its own commercial weight within the FASForm system. At the company’s planned Mason County, West Virginia facility, which will process 7,500 tons of coal per day, FASCarbon will be produced alongside diesel, naphtha, jet fuel, ammonium sulfate fertilizer and sulfuric acid. Every output has a defined market. The carbon product slots into steel, cement and industrial fuel applications that already have established buyers, pricing mechanisms and distribution infrastructure.

The steel and heavy industry markets that FASCarbon targets are not waiting for a new generation of technology to arrive. They are operating today, consuming carbon inputs at scale, and paying a premium for lower-sulfur grades that meet their quality requirements. Frontieras is building a facility that produces exactly that product, from domestic feedstock, at a U.S. location, with no reliance on imported material or overseas processing.

For more information about Frontieras, visit the company’s website at www.Frontieras.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Frontieras are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/Frontieras

Disseminated on behalf of SPARC AI Inc. (CSE: SPAI) (OTCQB: SPAIF) and may include paid advertising.

• SPARC AI is expanding its push into the U.S. public safety market with GPS-independent target acquisition and navigation technology designed for drones and other autonomous systems.
• The company has established a dedicated U.S. Federal and Public Safety team focused on customer engagement, demonstrations, evaluations, systems integration and government procurement pathways.
• The new team is intended to help move Overwatch from field evaluations toward operational adoption across law enforcement, border security, search and rescue, disaster response and critical-infrastructure missions.

SPARC AI (CSE: SPAI) (OTCQB: SPAIF) is developing software designed to give drones and other autonomous systems targeting and navigation capabilities without relying on GPS. As interference and denial become increasingly relevant across defense and public-safety environments, the company is positioning its technology around a straightforward challenge: maintaining accurate positioning and target acquisition when conventional satellite navigation is unavailable or unreliable.

SPARC AI’s technology portfolio includes a Target Acquisition System designed to determine the geolocation of visible objects using camera telemetry and advanced mathematical modeling. Its SPARC AI Mobile technology extends those capabilities to handheld devices, allowing operators to identify and transmit coordinates to connected drones, while its GPS-Denied Navigation technology supports mission planning and execution without GPS.

These capabilities are brought together through Overwatch, the company’s mission-ready platform for real-time classification, detection, tracking, target acquisition and navigation. The software-based system is designed to provide autonomous systems with positioning and targeting capabilities in environments where GPS signals may be limited or unavailable.

Building a Path from Evaluation to Deployment

The technology itself is only one part of the commercialization challenge. For government and public-safety customers, moving from a successful demonstration to operational deployment can require field testing, integration, procurement support and continued engagement with end users.

SPARC AI is now building infrastructure around that process.

The company recently announced the establishment and initial buildout of a dedicated U.S. Federal and Public Safety team focused on expanding Overwatch within government and mission-critical markets. The team will advance customer engagement, coordinate field demonstrations and evaluations, develop relationships with systems integrators and OEM partners, support government procurement pathways and help convert successful Overwatch evaluations into operational adoption.

It will also work with SPARC AI’s engineering and integration teams to incorporate operator feedback and mission requirements into product-development priorities.

The company has secured a senior commercial leader to oversee federal and public-safety sales while coordinating capabilities across integration engineering, customer engagement and government contracting support.

Targeting GPS-Denied Missions

The team’s initial focus includes law enforcement and border security, disaster response, search and rescue, and critical-infrastructure monitoring. These applications share a common requirement: teams may need accurate positioning and target information even when GPS is unavailable, unreliable or disrupted.

SPARC AI’s software-only approach is designed to address that challenge without requiring specialized hardware or external data feeds. By using camera telemetry, mathematical modeling and software-based processing, the company aims to provide positioning and target-acquisition capabilities across existing platforms.

For public-safety organizations, that could be particularly relevant when infrastructure is damaged, communications are degraded or satellite-navigation signals cannot be trusted.

The opportunity also extends beyond individual drones. If Overwatch can be integrated across different robotic platforms and operational environments, the same underlying technology could potentially support a range of missions requiring accurate positioning and target acquisition without dependable GPS.

Moving Toward Broader Adoption

The establishment of the Federal and Public Safety team represents a step forward in SPARC AI’s commercialization strategy. The company is not only demonstrating what GPS-independent technology can do, but also building the customer, integration and procurement infrastructure needed to support adoption.

That distinction is important in defense and public safety, where a successful technology demonstration does not automatically translate into operational deployment. Systems must meet mission requirements, integrate with existing workflows and platforms, and navigate established procurement processes.

SPARC AI’s new team is designed to support that transition while feeding operator feedback back into product development.

As drones and autonomous systems become increasingly important to surveillance, reconnaissance, emergency response and security operations, the ability to maintain reliable positioning outside conventional GPS environments could become increasingly valuable.

SPARC AI is positioning Overwatch around that challenge while building a dedicated U.S. organization to pursue federal and public-safety opportunities. If the company can convert evaluations into repeatable operational deployments, the initiative could mark an important transition from technology validation toward broader adoption.

For more information, visit the company’s website at https://sparcai.co.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SPAIF are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/SPAIF

• Following completion of the initial phase of its collaboration with OmniAb, VERAXA will engineer the final VXA-222 candidate and conduct the preclinical validation needed to determine the program’s next development steps.
• VXA-222 uses an “AND-gate” approach designed to recognize two tumor-associated antigens simultaneously before delivering its therapeutic payload.
• The company has separately filed its first patents related to its BiTAC-TCE and BiTAC-ADC platforms while expanding protection around antibody conjugation and payload technologies.
• The company is building a diversified oncology pipeline spanning bispecific T-cell engagers, ADCs, and other engineered antibody formats.

VERAXA Biotech (NASDAQ: VRXA), an emerging leader in designing novel cancer therapies, has moved its VXA-222 bispecific antibody-drug conjugate program into the next stage of development after completing the initial phase of its collaboration with OmniAb, giving the biotechnology company a new development milestone while it continues expanding the intellectual-property estate underpinning its antibody technology portfolio.

According to a Yahoo Finance report, VERAXA will now take the antibody binders generated through the OmniAb collaboration and use its own antibody engineering, linker and conjugation technologies to construct the final VXA-222 candidate. The company will then conduct in vitro and in vivo studies as part of the preclinical validation process (https://ibn.fm/jR6JV).

The development update comes as VERAXA pursues a broader oncology strategy that includes antibody-drug conjugates, T-cell engagers and engineered antibody formats. VERAXA’s corporate materials outline a technology-focused approach to antibody therapeutics, with the company developing programs both around its proprietary BiTAC platform and through other antibody-engineering technologies.

The VXA-222 program originated from a collaboration with OmniAb that began in May 2025. Under the arrangement, OmniAb applied its antibody-discovery capabilities to generate therapeutic antibody binders suitable for development into a bispecific ADC.

OmniAb’s contribution included its OmniClic(TM) transgenic chicken technology, which is designed to generate common-light-chain antibodies that can be used in bispecific therapeutics. The discovery program produced a portfolio of human antibody candidates that underwent affinity maturation.

With that phase completed, responsibility for the next stage shifts to VERAXA. The company plans to combine the selected binders with its proprietary antibody engineering, linker and conjugation technologies. The objective is to produce the final bispecific antibody-drug conjugate candidate and then evaluate its performance through laboratory and animal studies.

VXA-222 is designed around an “AND-gate” mechanism. Instead of relying on recognition of a single tumor-associated antigen, the bispecific molecule is intended to recognize two separate targets simultaneously. The rationale is that requiring both targets to be present could increase selectivity for cancer cells while reducing exposure to healthy tissue. 

The VXA-222 milestone coincides with another area of activity that is particularly relevant to a development-stage biotechnology company: intellectual property. On July 29, VERAXA announced its first patent filings covering its newest BiTAC technology platforms, including BiTAC-TCE and BiTAC-ADC programs.

The filings cover more than individual drug candidates. According to the company, the applications include composition-of-matter claims, proprietary payload technologies and elements of the underlying antibody-engineering platforms. Additional intellectual-property work covers enabling technologies such as click chemistry and conjugation methods. VERAXA said certain patent applications involving these technologies have also completed their opposition periods.

The company now reports more than 50 granted patents that it either owns or exclusively licenses, spanning 26 patent families in 14 countries. Newly filed applications, if ultimately granted, are expected to extend protection for portions of its technology portfolio through at least 2047.

A significant portion of the company’s intellectual-property strategy is focused on its BiTAC platform. VERAXA describes BiTAC as a molecular architecture designed to increase tumor selectivity through dual-target recognition. The underlying concept is to require interaction with two cancer-associated targets before the therapeutic mechanism becomes active.

The company’s BiTAC-TCE approach applies this concept to T-cell engagers. The BiTAC-TCE approach splits a TCE into two complementary antibody components whereby each component alone retains the ability to bind its tumor target, but its CD3-engaging activity remains switched off. Full cytotoxic activity is triggered only when both components co-localize on a single cell, meaning a cancer cell that expresses both intended target antigens.

Its BiTAC-ADC approach uses two antibody components that independently deliver inactive components, which are intended to become therapeutically active through a specific click-to-release chemical reaction inside targeted tumor cells.

These approaches are being developed with the goal of limiting activity outside tumors while addressing technical considerations associated with conventional antibody-based therapies.

The broader antibody-drug conjugate market has attracted substantial pharmaceutical investment because ADCs combine the targeting properties of antibodies with potent therapeutic payloads. Bispecific formats add another layer by allowing a therapy to recognize multiple biological targets.

VERAXA’s strategy is therefore not dependent on a single molecular format. The company’s pipeline includes conventional and bispecific ADC programs alongside T-cell engagers and other engineered antibody candidates. 

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Veraxa.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to VRXA are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/VRXA

• The United States sits on a significant coal resource base.
• FASForm produces six commercial outputs from a single coal input: diesel, naphtha, jet fuel, ammonium sulfate fertilizer, sulfuric acid and FASCarbon(TM).
• Frontieras is moving this technology from development into construction.

The Strait of Hormuz closure that began in late February 2026 removed more than 11 million barrels of Middle Eastern crude per day from global markets and sent Brent crude from roughly $62 a barrel in December 2025 to more than $117 by April 2026. Diesel and jet fuel wholesale prices are forecast to rise more than 60% in 2026 compared to preconflict projections. The disruption has made one argument hard to ignore: Energy systems built around imported feedstocks and foreign supply chains are exposed to risks that domestic production does not carry. Frontieras North America is a company built on exactly that premise. Its patented FASForm(TM) technology converts domestic coal into diesel, naphtha, jet fuel, hydrogen, FASCarbon(TM), ammonium sulfate fertilizer and sulfuric acid using a feedstock that is abundant, domestically produced and priced independently of global oil markets.

The United States sits on a significant coal resource base. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“EIA”), as of January 1, 2025, the country’s demonstrated reserve base contained approximately 468 billion short tons of coal, a resource larger than remaining U.S. natural gas and oil combined when measured by energy content. The country currently produces roughly 500 million short tons annually and has capacity well in excess of what combustion markets currently consume. That gap between what the ground holds and what existing applications use represents the core opportunity Frontieras is pursuing.

Coal has one property that makes it particularly useful as a feedstock for domestic fuel production: Its price does not move with crude oil. FASForm generates liquid transportation fuels from coal through a continuous thermal cracking and distillation process; no combustion, no water input, no CO2 is produced in the process itself. What is produced is 2.3 barrels of liquid fuels from each ton of coal processed, and because operating costs are independent of oil prices, margins grow as crude rises. In a market where diesel wholesale prices are surging past 60% above prior forecasts, a domestic fuel production system anchored to coal feedstock costs rather than Brent crude represents a structurally different risk profile.

FASForm produces six commercial outputs from a single coal input: diesel, naphtha, jet fuel, ammonium sulfate fertilizer, sulfuric acid, and FASCarbon, a low-sulfur industrial carbon product. None of these require foreign feedstocks or overseas processing. The fertilizer output is particularly timely. The same Strait of Hormuz disruption that spiked oil prices also cut off urea and fertilizer flows that pass through Middle Eastern shipping lanes, raising food-security concerns alongside energy-security worries. FASForm captures and repurposes the ammonia and sulfur compounds released during coal fractionation into ammonium sulfate fertilizer, a product with established domestic demand that, from a Frontieras facility, would be produced entirely within U.S. supply chains.

The process operates as a closed-loop system. Frontieras describes it as zero waste: The volatiles, moisture and contaminants extracted from coal during fractionation are captured and repurposed or sold to buyers or in the spot market rather than released. Sulfur is removed from the coal stream and converted into sulfuric acid. Mercury and arsenic are eliminated. And at the West Virginia facility, water extracted during fractionation will be filtered and returned to the Ohio River.

Frontieras is moving this technology from development into construction. In January 2026, West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey announced that Frontieras had closed on 183 acres in Mason County, where the company will build its first commercial-scale FASForm facility. The investment is estimated at $850 million. The company hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the plant earlier this year and is moving forward with plans to build the facility.

“This groundbreaking marks a decisive step in the commercialization of FASForm and the return of serious industrial investment to America’s energy regions,” said Frontieras CEO and cofounder Matthew McKean. “We’re building a new class of energy infrastructure that extracts maximum value from domestic resources — profitably, at scale, and with a zero-waste design.” 

The West-Virginia project is expected to create more than 2,000 construction jobs and 200-plus permanent positions. Frontieras selected Mason County over competing sites in Texas and Wyoming, citing West Virginia’s infrastructure, logistics advantages and energy-friendly regulatory environment. 

Each FASForm facility is designed to process 7,500 tons of coal per day, or roughly 2.7 million tons annually. That represents approximately 0.5% of U.S. annual coal production per facility. The math suggests significant room for expansion without straining domestic supply. The company holds patents in nine countries across five continents, covering an estimated 85% of global coal markets. The technology’s combined addressable markets — spanning fuels, hydrogen, fertilizer and industrial chemicals — are estimated by the company at more than $2.1 trillion.

The broader energy policy environment is shifting in ways that favor this kind of domestic production model. The EIA’s June 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook notes that disruptions to crude oil and refined product flows through the Strait of Hormuz have increased demand for U.S. supply. Deloitte’s 2026 oil and gas industry outlook identifies supply chain resilience as a defining priority, noting that ongoing disruptions are driving industries to favor domestic or nontariffed suppliers over lowest-cost foreign sourcing. Frontieras is producing fuels and materials from a feedstock that never leaves the country, a supply chain that geopolitical disruption cannot reach.

Coal’s value as an industrial feedstock has been largely bypassed in favor of its simpler use as a combustion fuel. Frontieras is built on the argument that this is a enormous missed opportunity. The company’s FASForm platform treats coal the way a refinery treats crude oil: as a complex hydrocarbon resource to be separated into its most valuable constituent parts. What comes out the other end is not emissions but products: fuel for trucks and aircraft, hydrogen for industrial processes, fertilizer for farms and carbon materials for manufacturing. These are markets the United States currently depends on foreign suppliers to fill. Frontieras is working to change that, from the ground up, using a resource the country already has in abundance. 

For more information about Frontieras, visit the company’s website at www.Frontieras.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Frontieras are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/Frontieras

• WRAP is using newly raised $12 million in growth capital to support planned business expansion and accelerate development of its WrapShield(TM) platform.
• The company is connecting technologies spanning detection, response, training and evidence management as it expands beyond traditional law enforcement into enterprise, federal, defense and international markets.
• WRAP’s growing technology portfolio and strategic partnerships position WrapShield(TM) as an architecture designed to bring multiple public safety capabilities together under a unified platform.

Public safety agencies are increasingly confronting a technology environment in which detection, response, training and digital evidence must work together rather than operate as isolated systems. As agencies modernize their operations, the opportunity is expanding beyond individual products toward connected platforms capable of supporting multiple stages of the public safety workflow.

Wrap Technologies (NASDAQ: WRAP) is positioning itself around that shift through WrapShield(TM), an expanding technology architecture designed to connect detection, decision-making and proportionate response across public safety and security applications.

The strategy represents a broader evolution of WRAP’s business. The company’s portfolio includes BolaWrap(R) 150, WRAP Vision(TM), WRAP Tactics(TM) and WRAP Reality(TM), providing capabilities spanning non-lethal response, digital evidence management and officer training. Rather than treating these technologies as standalone offerings, WRAP is working to integrate them into a broader platform capable of addressing multiple operational requirements.

That strategy received additional financial support on Aug. 18, when WRAP closed an equity offering that raised approximately $12 million in growth capital from institutional investors. According to the company, the funds are intended for working capital and general business purposes, including planned expansion that may accelerate WrapShield(TM), scale its public safety business and support opportunities across enterprise safety, U.S. federal and defense markets and international markets.

The capital comes as WRAP expands the potential scope of WrapShield(TM) beyond traditional law enforcement. The company says the architecture is being developed to incorporate technologies including advanced remote sensing, passive RF detection, counter-UAS capabilities and emerging detection and response technologies. Its relationship with Frenel Imaging also provides access to thermal polarimetric imaging technology that WRAP says could support applications ranging from early threat detection and counter-UAS to public safety and critical infrastructure.

This broader approach could give WRAP multiple avenues for commercialization. Technologies developed for one environment may have applications across law enforcement, enterprise security, critical infrastructure, major-event protection and federal or defense markets, allowing the company to pursue opportunities beyond the traditional market for non-lethal policing equipment.

WRAP is also expanding its potential customer base beyond government agencies. The company’s developing relationship with XINSURANCE is intended to support opportunities in enterprise safety, private security and insurance-supported programs, potentially introducing WRAP’s technologies to commercial organizations with broader workforce and security requirements.

For investors, the significance of this strategy lies in the potential transition from a product-focused public safety company toward a more diversified technology platform. Hardware such as BolaWrap(R) 150 remains an important component, but combining response technologies with training, evidence management, sensing and software could create opportunities for deeper relationships with agencies and organizations.

WRAP’s recent financing provides additional resources as the company pursues that expansion. At the same time, the company’s reported second-quarter revenue momentum, expanding product portfolio and growing technology pipeline provide a foundation for its efforts to scale the business.

The evolution of WrapShield(TM) ultimately reflects a larger change taking place across public safety and security technology. Agencies, enterprises and government organizations are increasingly looking for systems capable of connecting information, trained personnel and appropriate response rather than relying on disconnected tools. By bringing together detection, evidence management, training and proportionate response, WRAP is positioning WrapShield(TM) to participate in that broader convergence while pursuing opportunities across public safety, enterprise, federal, defense and international markets.

For more information, visit the company’s website at Wrap.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to WRAP are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/WRAP

About / Disclaimer

This article was produced by IBN Editorial Staff and is intended for informational purposes only. It is not investment advice and should not be relied upon as the basis for any investment decision. Statements attributed to Wrap Technologies Inc. or its management, including any forward-looking statements regarding revenue growth, product development, or market opportunities, reflect the company’s views and are subject to risks and uncertainties; actual results may differ materially. Readers should conduct their own due diligence and consult a qualified professional. Additional company information is available at wrap.com.

Disseminated on behalf of SPARC AI Inc. (CSE: SPAI) (OTCQB: SPAIF) and may include paid advertising.

• GPS jamming and spoofing have evolved from isolated battlefield threats into a broader operational challenge for military and autonomous systems.
• SPARC AI’s software-first approach is designed to provide target acquisition and navigation capabilities without relying on GPS or active sensing hardware.
• Integrations with existing drone platforms and software ecosystems could allow operators to add GPS-independent capabilities without replacing entire fleets.

Modern militaries have built decades of doctrine around the assumption that satellite navigation would remain available when needed, but that assumption is increasingly being challenged in real-world operations. Drone operators can have clear video feed while the coordinates associated with that imagery have been corrupted by jamming or spoofing, creating what the defense industry has started calling targeting paralysis. SPARC AI (CSE: SPAI) (OTCQB: SPAIF) has spent years developing software designed to address this vulnerability, enabling drones and edge devices to acquire targets and navigate without depending on GPS.

The scale of the jamming and spoofing problem has grown well beyond isolated incidents. The war between Russia and Ukraine has become a live testing ground for electronic warfare, with jamming and anti-jamming systems deployed extensively across the battlefield. Ukraine has also developed a nationwide spoofing defense network known as Pokrova to help protect cities, energy infrastructure and military facilities. At the same time, Ukrainian forces are fielding GPS-independent visual navigation systems, illustrating how quickly alternatives to satellite positioning are moving from specialized capabilities toward practical battlefield requirements. The broader lesson is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore GPS denial is no longer simply a contingency that militaries prepare for; it is an operational reality that increasingly shapes how autonomous systems are designed and deployed.

United States defense planners are reaching a similar conclusion. In July 2026, the Air Force Research Laboratory committed $49.7 million to a program aimed at maturing alternative satellite navigation technologies through 2031, raising the importance of navigation capabilities that can operate when GPS is disrupted or unavailable. Investment at that scale reflects a shift in how militaries and public-safety agencies approach navigation, with GPS increasingly viewed not as an unquestioned default but as one input among several that can be degraded, denied or manipulated.

SPARC AI approaches that shift from the software side rather than through new hardware. Its core technology, called Spatial Predictive Approximation and Radial Convolution, is designed to turn sensors, cameras and smartphones into target coordinate acquisition systems. The company describes the technology as a zero-signature approach because it does not depend on radar, lidar or other active emissions that could reveal a platform’s position to an adversary. That software-first architecture could be particularly relevant as military and autonomous-system operators look for ways to add GPS resilience without rebuilding the hardware platforms already in service.

That architecture runs across a growing suite of products rather than a single application. The company’s Overwatch platform provides real-time detection, tracking and target acquisition for drones and autonomous systems operating in signal-contested environments. Its ATLAS module, designed for mission planning, performs visibility and line-of-sight simulations entirely in software, reducing the need for active sensing hardware traditionally associated with terrain mapping. SPARC AI Mobile extends the same capability to handheld devices, running on a defense-grade smartphone to provide offline GPS-denied navigation and camera-based target identification without a laser range finder. Together, the platforms illustrate SPARC AI’s broader effort to deliver GPS-independent capabilities across multiple layers of the autonomous and defense technology stack.

Interoperability has also been central to the company’s development strategy. SPARC AI has built a Universal API that allows organizations to integrate Overwatch directly into existing drone hardware, and has also integrated with QGroundControl, a widely used open-source ground station supporting drone systems built around the PX4 and ArduPilot autopilots. These integrations lower the barrier for operators seeking to add GPS-independent capabilities to existing fleets rather than replace them entirely. In a fragmented drone market, where operators may be reluctant to discard proven hardware simply to gain greater GPS resilience, a software layer that can work across existing systems could provide an important commercial advantage.

Software alone does not reach military and public-safety customers without a path to market, and SPARC AI has spent the past year developing that side of the business as well. Late in 2025, the company signed a nonexclusive reseller agreement with a defense integrator with more than four decades of experience and offices across Europe, the United States and Australia. The arrangement gives SPARC AI access to established procurement relationships in several strategically important markets and covers the company’s target acquisition systems, autonomous navigation technology and Overwatch platform.

More recently, SPARC AI added a second drone manufacturer in Ukraine to its Overwatch platform, following earlier integrations with a manufacturer in India and a partner working with defense officials in the United Arab Emirates. Beyond expanding the potential reach of the platform, deployments across different drone systems can provide additional real-world operating data that may help inform future software development. That practical exposure is particularly relevant in GPS-denied navigation, where performance under contested conditions ultimately matters more than laboratory demonstrations alone.

As governments and defense integrators increasingly treat GPS denial as a baseline planning consideration rather than an edge case, demand for navigation and targeting capabilities that can operate independently of satellite positioning could continue to expand. SPARC AI’s software-first, hardware-agnostic approach gives the company a way to participate in that transition without requiring operators to replace the underlying platforms already in service. Combined with integrations across existing drone ecosystems, international partnerships and growing exposure to real-world deployments, the company’s strategy reflects a broader move toward making GPS resilience an integrated capability rather than a specialized add-on.

For more information, visit the company’s website at https://sparcai.co.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SPAIF are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/SPAIF

• VERAXA Biotech is changing how antibody-based therapies recognize and attack cancer cells, developing antibody-based cancer therapies with an emphasis on bispecific antibody-drug conjugates (“ADCs”) and T-cell engagers (“TCEs”).
• Its proprietary BiTAC platform uses a dual-targeting, “AND-gated” architecture designed to activate therapeutic effects preferentially at tumor sites.
• The company has advanced its lead BiTAC-TCE toward IND/CTA-enabling activities following cell-line development work and regulatory feedback from Germany’s Paul-Ehrlich-Institute.
• VERAXA’s VXA-222 bispecific ADC has moved beyond the initial discovery phase following completion of the antibody-discovery step with OmniAb.
• The company reported more than 50 granted owned or exclusively licensed patents across 26 patent families in 14 countries, alongside additional pending applications.

VERAXA Biotech (NASDAQ: VRXA), an emerging leader in designing novel cancer therapies, is advancing its oncology pipeline with a strategy centered on changing how antibody-based therapies recognize and attack cancer cells. The biotechnology company is developing bispecific antibody-drug conjugates, T-cell engagers and other engineered antibody formats, with its proprietary BiTAC technology providing the distinctive element of its approach.

The latest pipeline development involves VXA-222, a bispecific antibody-drug conjugate that has moved beyond the initial discovery phase following the completion of VERAXA’s collaboration with OmniAb. VERAXA is now responsible for engineering the final therapeutic candidate using antibody binders generated through the collaboration, followed by preclinical validation.

The program illustrates how VERAXA is applying its antibody-engineering capabilities beyond its BiTAC platform. VXA-222 is not itself a BiTAC candidate, but incorporates the company’s expertise in antibody engineering, linker technologies and conjugation.

The broader strategy is important because ADCs have become one of the most closely watched areas of oncology drug development. An ADC combines an antibody designed to recognize a cancer-associated target with a potent therapeutic payload. The objective is to direct that payload toward tumor cells while limiting exposure elsewhere in the body.

Bispecific ADCs extend that concept by recognizing two targets. VERAXA’s VXA-222 program is designed around this dual-targeting principle, with the intention of increasing tumor selectivity by requiring recognition of two tumor-associated antigens.

The company’s more distinctive approach is BiTAC, or Bi-targeted Tumor-Associated Cytotoxicity. Rather than simply placing two targeting functions into one conventional bispecific molecule, VERAXA separates the therapeutic mechanism into complementary components.

The underlying concept is an “AND gate.” Therapeutic activity is intended to become functional when both components encounter the appropriate targets on the same cancer cell. The company believes this could help distinguish tumor cells carrying both markers from healthy cells carrying only one. 

That distinction addresses one of the persistent challenges in antibody-based oncology: on-target, off-tumor toxicity. A cancer-associated antigen may also occur on healthy tissue, meaning that targeting the antigen alone can limit the dose that can safely be administered. By requiring two biological signals, VERAXA is attempting to make tumor recognition more selective.

The company has generated early experimental data supporting the concept. At the 2026 American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting, VERAXA reported that its lead BiTAC-TCE candidate attacked cells displaying both target molecules while sparing cells expressing only one. The company said the candidate demonstrated matching efficacy and a superior safety profile compared with a conventional TCE in the reported studies.

BiTAC is being applied to both TCEs and ADCs. In a BiTAC-TCE, separate components are designed to establish T-cell-engaging activity only after the required tumor targets are encountered. In a BiTAC-ADC, VERAXA is pursuing a different implementation in which complementary components enable selective activation of a cytotoxic payload inside targeted tumor cells.

The company reported proof-of-concept data for its BiTAC-ADC platform in June. In vitro experiments showed discrimination between breast cancer and healthy cells and dose-dependent killing of three-dimensional tumor spheroids.

The development program is now moving closer to the regulatory-development stage. In July, VERAXA announced that it had initiated cell-line development with ATUM for its lead BiTAC-TCE program, supporting planned IND/CTA-enabling activities. VERAXA subsequently received Scientific Advice from Germany’s Paul-Ehrlich-Institute concerning the biological rationale and proposed non-clinical development plan for the program. 

The company is also using computational tools to support its pipeline. In July, VERAXA announced a collaboration with Ardigen intended to apply artificial intelligence and bioinformatics to the selection of cancer target pairs for future BiTAC-TCE and BiTAC-ADC candidates.

Intellectual property is another component of the strategy. VERAXA said in late July that it had filed its first patent applications specifically covering its newer BiTAC-TCE and BiTAC-ADC platforms, while previously granted patents covering supporting technologies had cleared opposition periods. The company reported more than 50 granted owned or exclusively licensed patents spanning 26 patent families in 14 countries. VERAXA said pending applications are expected, if granted, to extend protection for portions of its core technology portfolio through at least 2047.

The portfolio also extends beyond BiTAC. VERAXA has additional ADC programs and VXA-901, an Fc-enhanced FLT3-targeting monoclonal antibody for acute myeloid leukemia. The company has indicated that certain assets are available for partnering as it concentrates resources on its newer platform technologies.

The company became publicly traded on NASDAQ in June 2026, following completion of its business combination with Voyager Acquisition Corp. The transaction was accompanied by a $27.5 million senior secured note and a securities purchase agreement providing for up to $50 million to support development of its pipeline.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Veraxa.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to VRXA are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/VRXA

• American Fusion, developing commercially viable small scale fusion technology, has appointed John Gerdin as an independent director and strategic advisor, adding nearly three decades of international finance and capital-markets experience, and Niclas von Schantz as a strategic advisor focused on brand strategy, commercialization, go-to-market planning, and international market development.
• The appointments come as American Fusion advances engineering and testing of its Texatron(TM) Fusion Engine(TM) platform.
• Gerdin’s experience includes corporate finance, capital formation, strategic partnerships, and international investor engagement.
• Von Schantz brings more than 25 years of commercialization experience spanning more than 100 brands and 50 markets, including work with Caterpillar, Vattenfall and Uponor.

American Fusion(TM) (OTC: AMFN), a developer of next-generation fusion energy technologies, is strengthening its corporate and commercial capabilities with two senior appointments as the company advances development of its Texatron(TM) Fusion Engine(TM). On Aug. 10, the company appointed John Gerdin to its Board of Directors as an independent director and strategic advisor, followed two days later by the appointment of Niclas von Schantz as a strategic advisor for brand, commercialization and international market development.

The appointments address different parts of the company’s development agenda. 

Gerdin joins the board with nearly three decades of experience in international finance, financial structuring and cross-border advisory work across Europe, Asia and North America (https://ibn.fm/jiZzS).

His professional background includes work with emerging-growth companies, institutional investors, family offices and private-banking clients. His advisory experience has included capital formation and financial structuring for private companies, as well as evaluation of technology businesses at research and development stages.

That experience is particularly relevant to American Fusion(TM) as it seeks to develop the financing and corporate structure that could eventually support commercialization of Texatron(TM).

Gerdin has served as Head of International Business and Growth at Recon Group AI since 2023 and previously worked as a senior consultant to Kepler Aerospace from 2015 through 2025. He has also held portfolio-advisory roles with Zurich-based Belmont Equity, First Swiss and Strategic Capital Partners.

As an independent director, his responsibilities will extend beyond advisory work. American Fusion(TM) said its board determined that Gerdin meets its independence criteria, with his board role expected to cover corporate governance, corporate finance, capital formation and long-term business strategy.

His appointment also comes as American Fusion(TM) works toward its stated objective of progressing to the OTCQB Market and, over the longer term, potentially qualifying for a national or regional exchange listing. Any such move remains dependent on applicable listing requirements and market conditions.

“American Fusion represents one of the most compelling advanced-energy opportunities I have encountered during my career. The combination of breakthrough engineering, disciplined intellectual property development, strong corporate leadership, and an ambitious long-term commercialization strategy creates a unique platform for growth,” Gerdin stated. “I am honored to join the Board of Directors and serve as a Strategic Advisor, and I look forward to helping the company build relationships with investors and strategic partners throughout Europe, Asia, and North America as American Fusion continues executing its vision.”

Von Schantz brings more than 25 years of experience in brand strategy, commercialization, and market development, working with more than 100 brands across more than 50 markets. His experience spans industrial technology, energy, automotive, infrastructure, and other sectors where complex products must be translated into understandable commercial propositions (https://ibn.fm/z8W4N).

His previous assignments have included strategic work for Caterpillar, including CAT Zeppelin in Sweden, and approximately five years of rebranding and product-launch work with Vattenfall. He has also worked with Mazda Sweden, Uponor Infrastructure, Nilfisk and ACCO Brands.

Von Schantz’s executive experience includes serving as Brand Chief Officer of Götessons Design Group from 2020 to 2024, where he led brand and communications strategy for nine brands operating across more than 50 markets. He also co-founded GSIGN Gaming and served as Global Market Manager and Brand Strategist for listed Swedish food-technology company EatGood.

At American Fusion(TM), his mandate will center on brand architecture, market positioning, commercialization strategy, go-to-market planning and international market development. The company has specifically highlighted Europe as an area of focus. Unlike Gerdin, von Schantz will not serve on the board. His role is consulting-based and does not include corporate governance or oversight responsibilities.

“American Fusion is working on a technology with the potential to change how distributed power is delivered, and that kind of opportunity demands clarity. My work has always been about finding where the real commercial opportunity sits, building a position around it, and making something complex easy to understand and easy to choose,” von Schantz said. “I look forward to helping American Fusion define that position and take it to market internationally.”

The appointments come against the backdrop of American Fusion’s(TM) development of the Texatron(TM) Fusion Engine(TM), an aneutronic fusion platform being developed for modular, infrastructure-grade applications.

The company’s approach differs from the conventional magnetic-confinement model associated with tokamaks. Rather than relying on magnetic fields to confine an extremely hot deuterium-tritium plasma, the Texatron(TM) concept is designed around aneutronic fusion and direct energy conversion, in which the kinetic energy of charged fusion products can potentially be converted directly into electrical energy.

American Fusion(TM) says the system is being developed around two non-radioactive fuels and that radiation detection and diagnostic instrumentation are incorporated throughout its engineering and testing program. The company has reported no measurable radiation during its testing activities to date.

The potential applications identified by the company include distributed, behind-the-meter electricity for power-intensive facilities and infrastructure. Those markets could eventually include data centers, industrial operations, defense installations, mining operations, hospitals and water infrastructure.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.AmericanFusionEnergy.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to AMFN are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/AMFN

• Many mid-market manufacturers cannot access the capital needed to build, retool or expand their facilities.
• A few factors tend to separate reshoring projects that get financed from those that stall.
• Market Street Capital is built to help manufacturers solve the multi-instrument structuring problem.

U.S. manufacturing is in the middle of a reshoring wave. Companies are moving production back to the United States, driven by supply chain resilience needs, CHIPS Act-adjacent demand and a broader push to reduce reliance on China. According to the Reshoring Initiative’s 2024 Annual Report, more than 2 million manufacturing jobs have been announced in the United States since 2010 through reshoring and foreign direct investment, including approximately 244,900 announced in 2024. 

But announcements are outpacing financing. Many mid-market manufacturers cannot access the capital needed to build, retool or expand their facilities. Closing that gap usually means stacking several financing tools together rather than relying on a single lender. This is where firms such as Market Street Capital play a role, helping manufacturers assemble the right mix of capital.

Reshoring projects strain conventional financing for a few reasons. New or retrofitted facilities are expensive. Specialized equipment adds cost, and revenue often lags well behind construction. Many of the companies riding this wave are mid-market suppliers, not the large primes capturing headline federal awards. For example, a 2023 CHIPS for America funding opportunity targets semiconductor materials and manufacturing equipment supplier projects with capital investment below $300 million. Availability and terms of federal programs change; figures are as of August 2026. Even so, many smaller suppliers still struggle to access that funding directly.

Banks also tend to be cautious. They are wary of funding speculative capacity expansion without long-term contracts already secured. A higher-rate environment adds to the difficulty of sizing a single loan against an uncertain ramp-up period. As a result, sponsors typically need to blend senior debt, equipment financing, and working capital lines rather than lean on one facility.

Senior term debt funds the core capital expenditure of a project. It is sized against projected earnings once the facility is fully ramped up. Lenders often want a committed offtake or long-term supply agreement with an anchor customer before extending this kind of debt.

Equipment financing covers machinery such as CNC machines or cleanroom tooling. This type of financing enables a company to acquire equipment without paying the full cost upfront. Because the equipment itself secures the loan, it is often faster to close and cheaper than general corporate debt.

Asset-based lending, or ABL, is a revolving facility secured by receivables and inventory. ABL works well for asset-rich, working-capital-intensive businesses with uneven cash flow. That description fits a manufacturer that is ramping production but not yet billing at full scale. ABL is often the tool that lets a growing supplier take on a new customer contract without straining its cash position.

Mezzanine debt fills the space between senior lenders and sponsor equity. Mezzanine sits between senior debt and equity in the capital structure. It is priced higher than senior debt but lower than equity, and often includes warrants or other equity features. Public incentives add yet another layer. State and local programs, along with CHIPS Act supply chain grants, can help reduce the amount of private capital a project needs. These sources usually need to be locked in before senior lenders will close, so sequencing matters.

Coordinating all these pieces is not simple. An equipment lender, an ABL provider, a term lender and public incentives all need to work together. That means careful collateral segmentation, so each lender knows exactly what it holds a lien on.

A few factors tend to separate reshoring projects that get financed from those that stall. Signed or highly probable supply agreements with credible anchor customers matter most. Realistic ramp-up timelines, validated by independent technical review, also help. Collateral needs to be clearly segmented across equipment, receivables and real estate so multiple lenders can stack without conflict. Incentive funding should be locked in, or close to it, to reduce pressure on private capital.

This is the kind of multi-instrument structuring problem Market Street Capital is built to help manufacturers solve. Through its debt capital markets and specialty lending practice, the firm works on senior debt, asset-based lending and mezzanine structuring. These are the exact tools a reshoring manufacturer typically needs to combine.

Market Street also focuses on middle-market companies. That focus lines up well with who actually needs this kind of help: Tier 2 and Tier 3 suppliers benefiting from reshoring demand but too small to draw much attention from large banks or federal programs.

Market Street maintains a network of more than 8,000 investor, family office and bank contacts; network size does not indicate that any investor will participate in a given transaction. Sourcing equipment lenders, ABL providers and mezzanine capital at the same time requires that kind of reach. As an independent adviser, Market Street’s role centers on structuring facilities and negotiating terms across multiple lenders.

For manufacturers trying to turn reshoring demand into built capacity, the real constraint usually is not whether financing exists. It is whether that financing can be assembled quickly and coherently across several instruments. That coordination is the focus of Market Street’s debt capital markets advisory work. No financing outcome can be assured.

For more information about the company, visit www.MarketStreetCP.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Market Street are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/MarketSt

Disclosures

This article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security. Any such offer may be made only pursuant to definitive offering materials and applicable transaction documents.

Nothing in this article is tax, legal or accounting advice. Readers should consult their own advisers.

Market data and third-party information are from sources believed to be reliable but have not been independently verified. No representation is made as to accuracy or completeness. Statements about financing structures are general in nature; no financing outcome can be assured.

Broker-dealer services are provided by Pickwick Capital Partners, LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC.